SPS academic wins Andrew Webster Prize for best UK PhD dissertation in science, technology & innovation studies
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School of Social and Political Science (SPS) academic Dr Benedetta Catanzariti has received an award for the best UK PhD dissertation in science, technology and innovation studies for her thesis on facial expression recognition systems.
Dr Catanzariti won the Andrew Webster Prize from AsSIST-UK, the UK association for scholars working in science, technology and innovation studies, for the outstanding quality of her dissertation in the field. Dr Catanzariti completed her PhD in at SPS in 2023 with a dissertation titled ‘Seeing Affect: Knowledge Infrastructures in Facial Expression Recognition Systems.’
AsSist-UK said: “Benedetta’s thesis examines affective computing applications and their promise to ‘decode human affective experience’ – in essence, to read the face and its emotions, from frustration to boredom and depression – with scientific objectivity.
“The nomination noted how she brings historical context to these practices by grounding them in older psychological theories (including overtly racist ones) and longstanding Western claims that there are universal emotions, and acknowledges an important legacy of critiques of such projects. Benedetta’s thesis, grounded in feminist studies of science and technology, offers empirical data on the current behind-the-scenes work that goes into the classification practices categorising affective behaviours and validating classification choices.’”
Dr Catanzariti, who works as a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow in the Science, Technology and Innovation Studies (STIS) subject area at SPS, said: "I am really honoured to have received the 2024 Andrew Webster PhD prize. I’d like to thank the selection committee at AsSIST-UK for choosing my dissertation for this year’s award, as I am sure there were many great submissions deserving of this prize as well. I am beyond grateful to my supervisors Morgan Currie, Ewa Luger, and Robin Williams and to the wider STIS community for their support throughout my PhD journey."
Congratulations are also due to SPS' Dr Vassilis Galanos, whose PhD thesis ‘Expectations and Expertise in Artificial Intelligence’ received a commendation from the Andrew Webster Prize.